Consumer Awareness of True Food Costs and Demand for Incentive-Based Sustainable Purchasing in Cluj County
About This Survey
We are conducting a short survey (approximately 15 minutes) to understand how consumers in Cluj County think about food prices, sustainability, and potential government incentives for sustainable food. The survey is part of a master's dissertation at USAMV Cluj-Napoca. Your participation is valuable and will help shape policy recommendations to support healthier food choices and Romania's small family farms. All responses are anonymous and will be used exclusively for academic research purposes.
DATA PROTECTION NOTICE
The data obtained in this study are strictly confidential and will be used for scientific purposes, in accordance with the requirements of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and their free movement. The statistical processing of the data provided will be analysed at the sample level and will not be presented individually in any scientific publication. The information obtained will be used only by the research team. Participation is voluntary and you have the right to withdraw at any time.
Thank you for your time. Since consent is required to participate, the survey cannot proceed. You may close this page.
Session 1
Q1. How often do you personally shop for food?
Select one option.
Q2. Where do you typically buy the following food products?
Select one option per row.
Food Category
Retailer(Lidl, Kaufland, Auchan, Mega Image, Profi)
Middleman
Direct from Producer(Farmer market, farm gate, brand store)
I don't buy this
CLASS I — Whole & Minimally Processed Foods
Fresh meat (beef, pork, chicken, turkey, lamb)
Fresh fish & seafood
Milk
Eggs
Wheat flour
Cornmeal
Rice
Whole legumes (lentils, chickpeas, beans, soy)
Vegetables
Fruit
CLASS II — Kitchen Ingredients (Made by simple processes: pressing, grinding, crushing, refining)
Condiments
Animal fats (lard, tallow)
Butter
CLASS III — Processed Foods (Class I or II foods further processed: salted, fermented, smoked, cooked)
Meat products (sausage)
Cheese
CLASS IV — Ultra-Processed Foods (Industrial formulations with additives, stabilisers, and emulsifiers)
Pre-packaged meat
Pre-packaged fish and seafood
Pre-packaged vegetables
Seed oils
Plant-based milk
Plant-based meat
Protein-based insect products
Q3. How often do you buy food directly from farmers or producers?
Select one option.
Q4. Approximately how much does your household spend on food per month?
Select one option.
Q5. How important are the following criteria when making a food shopping decision?
Select one option per row.
Criteria
1Not at all important
2Slightly important
3Moderately important
4Very important
5Extremely important
Convenience
Price
Certification
Producer trust
Health & nutrition
Environmental impact
Food safety
Supporting local producers
Taste & freshness
Q6. Apart from hunger, what motivates you most when buying a food product?
Drag items from the left box into the right box to rank them. The top item = most important (1), bottom = least important (4). You can rearrange within the right box.
📋 Options
⠿I trust that it is safe for me and my family
⠿It is part of my traditions and social life
⠿It satisfies my taste and personal preferences
⠿It aligns with what I believe is right
🏆 Your Ranking
Drag items here to rank them
Q7. Have you ever paid more for a food product specifically because you believed it was more natural, healthier, or better for the environment?
Select one option.
Q8. To what extent do you agree with the following statements?
Rate each from 1 (Strongly disagree) to 5 (Strongly agree).
Statement
1Strongly disagree
2Disagree
3Neither agree nor disagree
4Agree
5Strongly agree
I believe the food I buy is produced without significant harm to the environment
I think the price I pay for food reflects full cost to society, including effects on your health, and environment (soil, water, and climate)
I am willing to change my food shopping habits if I had better information about how food is produced
I believe small family farms produce food more responsibly than large industrial operations
Session 2
Please read each of the following scenarios carefully. They describe real costs associated with food production that are NOT included in the price you pay at the shop.
Scenario A — Environmental Costs
Researchers in Germany calculated that 1 kg of conventional beef from an intensive farm leaves behind about €9.60 worth of environmental damage including polluted air, dirty water, and degraded land. Beef from a smaller, pasture-based farm causes about half as much harm. But none of this shows up on the price tag. The damage is real. It is just paid by the rest of us, not by the producer.
(Michalke et al., 2023)
Q9. Before reading Scenario A, were you aware that food production generates significant environmental costs not reflected in its price?
Select one option.
Scenario B — Health Costs
Research shows that every €1 spent on food creates about €2 worth of damage to health and the environment (Kennedy et al., 2023). The biggest cause is conventional food, meaning cheap and heavily processed products that dominate supermarket shelves. These products are linked to obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. When people get sick, the hospital bills are paid by taxpayers, not by the companies that made the profit.
Q10. Before reading Scenario B, were you aware that cheap food can generate health costs that society pays for?
Select one option.
Scenario C — Social & Local Community Costs
Romania has 2.86 million farms, and 9 out of 10 of them are small family farms under 5 hectares. When these farms cannot make enough money to survive, the whole village suffers. Incomes dry up, young people leave for the city, and farming traditions that have existed for generations begin to disappear. This is not just an economic problem. It is the gradual disappearance of a way of life.
(Aceleanu, 2016; Romanian agricultural statistics)
Q11. Before reading Scenario C, were you aware that food pricing can contribute to rural depopulation and the decline of small farms?
Select one option.
Now that you have read all three scenarios, please answer the following:
Q12. Do you believe these external costs are real?
Statement
1Strongly disagree
2Disagree
3Neither agree nor disagree
4Agree
5Strongly agree
I believe these additional environmental costs (water, climate, and soil) are real and significant
I believe these additional health costs are real and significant
I believe these additional social costs are real and significant
Session 3
In the previous section, you saw that food production creates external costs that society pays for. But how do we calculate how much these cost?
Researchers have developed a method called True Cost Accounting (TCA) to estimate how much these external costs are worth. This does not change what you pay at the shop. It simply reveals the full picture behind the price. These external costs can be positive or negative. A product with a low shop price may carry high costs to society, while food from a small family farm using fewer chemicals may carry much lower costs. The price on the label is not the complete cost. The difference is covered elsewhere, through taxes, healthcare, or environmental repair.
Q13. The following types of external cost are currently used by researchers to calculate the true cost of food. Please indicate how much you agree that each should be included.
Statement
1Strongly disagree
2Disagree
3Neither agree nor disagree
4Agree
5Strongly agree
Pollution from greenhouse gases released during food production
Air pollution, toxic chemicals, and substances that harm human bodies
Pollution of rivers, lakes, and oceans from farming run off
Damage to farmland, soil poisoning, and loss of usable land
Q14. Now that you have seen how True Cost Accounting works, how credible do you find this approach to revealing the external costs of food?
Select one option.
Q15. The following are external costs proposed by researchers but not yet included in standard True Cost Accounting calculations. How much do you agree that each should be included?
Statement
1Strongly disagree
2Disagree
3Neither agree nor disagree
4Agree
5Strongly agree
Use of fossil fuels and minerals during food production
Loss of biodiversity, damage to ecosystems, and carbon stored in healthy soil
Suffering of animals raised for food
Fair wages and safe working conditions for farm workers
The right of local communities to benefit from food produced in their area
Food affordability and access after industrial farming
Q16. Considering these gaps in the current approach, how credible do you still find True Cost Accounting as a way to reveal the external costs of food?
Select one option.
Q17. If the true cost of food were reflected in prices — meaning sustainable food became relatively cheaper and conventional food became relatively more expensive — which of the following would you be most likely to do?
Select one.
Session 4
Q18. The government could intervene in food pricing in different ways. Please indicate how much you agree with each approach.
Statement
1Strongly disagree
2Disagree
3Neither agree nor disagree
4Agree
5Strongly agree
Foods that cause more environmental and social harm should cost more
Producers whose products cause more harm should pay higher taxes
Foods that cause less environmental and social harm should cost less
Consumers who buy lower-harm food should receive a financial benefit
Q19. Thinking about your own behaviour, which of the following would most encourage you to buy sustainable food?
Drag items from the left box into the right box to rank them. The top item = most effective (1), bottom = least effective (5). You can rearrange within the right box.
📋 Options
⠿Information showing the "True Cost" of food (no price change)
⠿A discount on sustainable food applied at the point of purchase
⠿A tax deduction claimed at the end of the year for sustainable food purchases
⠿An additional tax on non-sustainable food products to cover their environmental and health costs
⠿A combination of higher prices on non-sustainable food and discounts on sustainable food
🏆 Your Ranking
Drag items here to rank them
Q20. What would you need to trust that a product genuinely qualifies as "verified sustainable" in order to receive the incentive?
Select up to 3 options.
Session 5
These final questions help us understand who participated in this survey. All responses remain anonymous.
Q21. What is your age?
years
Q22. Gender
Select one option.
Q23. Where do you currently live?
Select one option.
Q24. Highest level of education completed
Select one option.
Q25. What industry do you currently work in?
Select one option.
Q26. Monthly household net income (RON)
Optional — select one option.
Q27. How many people live in your household (including yourself)?
Select one option.
Thank you for completing this survey!
Your responses will contribute to research on designing fairer food pricing policies for Romania and supporting the country's small family farms.
Optional: If you would like to receive a summary of the research results or be contacted for a follow-up interview, please leave your email address below.
This information will be stored separately from your survey responses and will not be linked to your answers.